Beloved Followers, Stop Worshipping Me

Dear ones,

It has come to my attention that some of you like to worship me as it relates to the fact of my incarnation during the month of December.  Please stop. I never told you it was okay.

Feel free to focus on that important point in our story of redemption other times of the year, just not around the end of the year.

Even though it was an amazing,  miraculous act of love.  Even though it represents what I gave up for you.  Even though it is so wonderfully complex and important.  Don’t worship me pertaining to that for a few weeks in December, okay?

When others are talking about it, emphasizing it, and getting excited about Me, please restrain yourself.  Practice some self-control and wait until spring.

Even if joy, wonder, and amazement well up inside of you, don’t give in.  Just continue on like normal, as if nothing happened.

This might require turning off the radio at certain times and avoiding certan hymns in your books and certain people who won’t obey this command.  Whatever happens, resist the temptation.

I hope you understand,

your Lord and Savior

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I was wondering if that argument made anymore sense if put explicitly in Jesus’ words.

Nope, it doesn’t.

The Church of Christ Canon

(Some thoughts on Satire as a teaching method:especially the comments)

The churches of Christ need a Bible that accurately reflects our rich tradition, doctrine, and practice.

Consider these alterations to reflect who we really are:

Let’s start by removing large portions of the Old Testament, since it was nailed to the Cross anyway.

Genesis can stay, and the first half of Exodus. Leviticus is out except for Chapter 10 (Nadab and Abihu).  Numbers and Deuteronomy are gone.  Let’s add Leviticus 10 to Exodus and call that one book.

The Historical books can stay because they are easy to study and David rocks, except Kings and Chronicles are redundant.  So, we will combine them to 1 and 2 Kingicles.

Ruth and Esther are out because they emphasize women too much.  And Esther doesn’t even mention God.

Psalms and Proverbs can stay, but Ecclesiastes (too weird) and Song of Solomon (may be about sex) are definitely out.

Isaiah is in and Jeremiah can stay solely because of 6:16 (seek the old paths). No one reads Lamentations, so it’s out.

Only chapter 37 from Ezekiel can remain because it makes a great “restoration” sermon.”  The rest of the book might give fuel to pre-millennial doctrines.  It will be included in Jeremiah.

The minor prophets can be condensed down to one book that contains all the Messianic prophecies and all verses that emphasize the Meanness of God.

On to the New Testament, which is, of course, our sole basis for faith and practice.

Since John says waaay too much about the Holy Spirit and four is kinda overkill anyway, let’s just keep the first two:  Matthew and Mark.

Acts is so important, that it should actually be repeated.  So, three copies in every Bible.

Romans is also good, except for chapters 9-11, which should be removed.

The rest of Paul’s writings are good and can remain, except for Philemon, which doesn’t say much about the church or baptism.

Hebrews through 1 Peter are in. 1 John can stay, but what’s the point of 2 and 3 John?

Jude stays because it teaches us to contend for the Faith! (ty, NG)

Revelation is definitely too weird and used by the denominations to teach false millennial doctrines so it must be removed.

At this point, we are down to 37 book.  We definitely want to always have 66 books in our Bible, so here is a solution.

At the end of the OT, we will add the Gospel Advocate Commentary Series, except for ones written by David Lipscomb who was a pacifist and against slavery, which sounds like a socialist to me.

Also, add J.W. McGarvey’s Commentary on Acts (but only the original one because it’s better than the new one) and Moses Lard’s Commentary on Romans.

That gives us 13 more books once we exclude Lipscomb. Up to 48.

Since we took out Ezekiel and Revelation for millennial purposes, we can add Foy E. Wallaces’ “God’s Prophetic Word” to refute any false teachings that might remain.

Two more books that must be a part of the Church of Christ Canon are Guy N. Woods “Questions and Answers, vol. 1 and 2.”

We definitely need something from our founder Alexander Campbell, so “Christianity Restored” and “The Christian System” are must-haves.

Another addition, from more recent leaders, “The Bible makes Christians Only and the Only Christians by Thomas B. Warren.

C.R. Nichols 6-volume “Sound Doctrine” also deserves a spot here.

Now we are are at 60.  Almost there.

Shall we include some tracts in our Canon, to help new believers understand certain doctrines that they may not understand with the Bible alone?  I think so!

Tracts:

“The Sin of Social Drinking“

“Dancing:  The Slippery Slope to Prostitution” (ty, TM)

“Decently and In Order:  Everything God Meant to Say about our Worship Assembly“

‘Hear, Believe, Repent, Confess, Be Baptized:  Everything you need to Know about Salvation in 5 sentences”

An egregious oversight: N.B. Hardeman’s Tabernacle Sermons must be included.  We shall remove 2 Corinthians and the Thessalonian letters.

That’s enough tracts.  Now finally, the final two additions for our 66-volume Church of Christ Bible, is….

“Behold the Pattern” by Goebel Music

“Why I am a Member of the Church of Christ” by Leroy Brownlow.

Here is your new Table of Contents:

Table of Contents

The Old Testament

Genesis

Exodus (Lev 10)

Joshua

Judges

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kingicles

2 Kingicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Psalms

Proverbs

Isaiah

Jeremiah (Ezekiel 37)

Daniel

Minor Prophets:  Greatest Hits

GA: Matthew

GA: Mark

GA: Luke

GA: John

GA: Acts

GA: Hebrews

GA: James

GA: Peter-Jude

GA: Revelation

McGarvey on Acts

Moses Lard on Romans

“God’s Prophetic Word” by Foy E. Wallace

“Q&A, vol 1” by Guy N. Woods

“Q&A, vol 2” by Guy N. Woods

“Christian System” By Campbell

“Christianity Restored” by Campbell

“The Bible Makes Christians only and the Only Christians” by Thomas B. Warren

Sound Doctrine 1 by Nichols

Sound Doctrine 2 by Nichols

Sound Doctrine 3 by Nichols

Sound Doctrine 4 by Nichols

Sound Doctrine 5 by Nichols

Sound Doctrine 6 by Nichols

The New Testament

Acts

Matthew

Mark

Tract:  Dancing:  The Slippery Slope to Prostitution

Tract: Sin of Social Drinking

Acts

Romans

1 Corinthians

Tabernacle Sermons vol 1

Galatians

Ephesians

Philippians

Colossians

Tabernacle Sermons vol 2

Tabernacle Sermons vol 3

1 Timothy

2 Timothy

Hebrews

James

1 Peter

1 John

Jude

Tract:  Decently and in Order

Tract: H, B, R, C, Baptism

“Behold the Pattern” by Goebel Music

“Why I am a Member of the Church of Christ” by Leroy Brownlow

Acts

A church of Christ Lectionary

Note:  For all you hard-working preachers out there who are busy “marking” false teachers and having trouble coming up with a sermon each week, I would like to make you aware of this Preaching Schedule.  It is good for any year; in fact, why not just repeat it each year?

January

Sunday #1—What must I do to be saved?

Sunday #2—How Alexander Campbell restored the New Testament Church

Sunday #3—Thoughts on Baptism from Ezekiel

Sunday #4—Max Lucado:  Satan Incarnate or just a False Prophet?

Sunday #5—What is the Church of Christ?

February

Sunday #6—The 5 Steps to Salvation

Sunday #7—Why anyone who believes in the Holy Spirit must be Pentecostal

Sunday #8—Everything I know about the Old Testament

Sunday #9—Baptism in Philemon

March

Sunday #10—Today is the Day of Salvation

Sunday #11—I am a member of the Church of Christ, What about You?

Sunday #12—St Patrick’s Day Sermon:  The sin of social drinking

Sunday #13—The Joys of Marking False Brethren

April

Sunday #14—How were people saved in Bible Times?

Sunday #15—Anything but the Resurrection, part 1

Sunday #16—Anything but the Resurrection, part 2

Sunday #17—The Pagan Origins of Easter

Sunday #18—18 Reasons Rubel Shelly needs to repent

May

Sunday #19—What Must I do to be saved?

Sunday #20—Mothers Day Sermon:  How my Mom Became a NT Christian

Sunday #21—Will We Wear Ties in Heaven?

Sunday #22—How do I become a member of the Church of Christ?

June

Sunday #23–Hear, Believe, Repent, Confess, and be Baptized

Sunday #24—The Sins of ACU

Sunday #25—Father’s Day Sermon:  Why Dad is a member of the Church of Christ

Sunday #26—How Repentance fits in the Plan of Salvation

July

Sunday #27—What must I do to be saved?

Sunday #28—Growth through Division

Sunday #29—Which Bible Translation? (Alternate title:  “NIV: Satan’s Masterpiece”)

Sunday #30—Baptism in Obadiah

Sunday #31—5 Reasons Jeff Walling is Wrong about Everything

August

Sunday #32—Salvation in 5 easy steps

Sunday #33—The Plan of Salvation in Deuteronomy

Sunday #34—One Church, One Name, “Church of Christ”

Sunday #35—The Birth of Jesus (and why it’s wrong to preach on it in December)

September

Sunday #36—The New Testament plan for Salvation

Sunday #37—False Doctrine, part 1

Sunday #38—False Doctrine, part 2

Sunday #39—False Doctrine, part 3

October

Sunday #40—False Doctrine, part 4

Sunday #41—Healthy Doctrine:  What must I do to be saved?

Sunday #42—Healthy Doctrine: We Are Going to Heaven and They Are Not

Sunday #43—Why it is wrong to celebrate Halloween

November

Sunday #44–What the Bible says about salvation

Sunday #45–I am thankful that the instrument-users are going to Hell

Sunday #46–I am thankful for Foy E. Wallace, Jr.

Sunday #47–I am thankful for Barton W. Stone

December

Sunday #48—What must I do to be saved?

Sunday #49—Anything but the birth of Christ, part 1

Sunday #50—Anything but the birth of Christ, part 2

Sunday #51—The Evils of celebrating Christmas

Sunday #52—Unforgivable Sin: Singing Nativity Hymns within 3 months of December 25^th

Laughing at Ourselves and Others

Satire is not for everyone.  I know that, yet I continue to use it.  Maybe some people need a shock.  Maybe some people need to laugh a little before opening up to my point.  Maybe I am totally wasting my time and driving sincere believers away because of the tone.

Churches of Christ have used humor a lot, even sarcasm.  But for many years it seems that it was usually directed at the denominational world and “erring brethren.”  Debates, bulletin articles, sermons, publications etc. have attacked others with a smirk.

At some point, those who are often considered more progressive/liberal began using those same tactics against those same people.  And, of course, they didn’t like it.  But what should they expect.  The created an attitude and atmosphere.

For many, sarcasm and satire are good/bad depending only on the target.  If I had used similar jokes against Rick Atchley or Barack Obama, Don Neyland would have loved it. Am I right, Don?

I attended a “gospel” meeting in recent years in an urban setting where a brother from Alabama came to preach.  It was right after Pope John Paul died.  This preacher mocked and ridiculed the Catholic church because their “head” died.  He kept going on and on about the smoke signals, and etc. and etc.  I was offended.  I sat there praying that none of these Christians had invited Catholic friends to hear the gospel–someone mock they respected leader.  I wanted to walk out.  I wonder how he would handle someone mocking his OTC theology.

It seems that those who pick on outsiders are often considered more traditional, and those who pick on “us” are considered more liberal.

For me, it’s about the speck/plank/beams and eyes.  I would rather point out problems among us to challenge people to think than pick on others.  For the record, I will try to be an equal-opportunity satirizer.

When is it appropriate?  When is it not appropriate?

Can you poke fun at bad attitudes or doctrines without hurting the individuals?

God or Jesus would certainly never say or do anything shocking to get someone’s attention, would they?  Surely, Jesus doesn’t have a sense of humor.  In all the movies, he is pretty straight-faced and somber.

Urban Ministry Update

I heard some wonderful stories about what God is doing in the Greater (or not so great) Detroit, MI, area while I was at Tulsa.  Unfortunately, they were not all good news.  Satan is still throwing weeds into the wheat fields.  Here is one sad story as I heard it.

A church was planted among some gang members a couple of years ago and began to flourish.  Bloods, Crips, mexican, and asian gangs were united in Christ and worshipping God together until one day.

One day a new missionary came to town from the Alabama Bible College.  He began teaching on the fundamentals.  Also, a team from S.O.L.E. (School of Legalistic Evangelists) arrived to “help” with the work.  You might know them from their motto, “We are the S.O.L.E. people who are right and going to heaven.”  (not to be confused with S.O.U.L.–Seeking Out Unrepentant Liberals.  They used to work together until they had a break-up over differing interpretations of Revelation.) Then, another group of well-intentioned brethren moved into the area but decided to start another congregation in the hood.

It all went downhill from there.  I am sorry to say that after a 14 month period of debates, knife-fights, gospel meetings, scathing bulletin articles, and excommunications… there are now 13 separate church groups meeting in various places.  Sure, they are trying to put a positive spin on things.  Saying stuff like, “God planted 13 churches where they was once only one.”  And hoping that the different groups will reach more diverse segments of the population.

So, the streets of Detroit are violent once again. But instead of being divided by race and gang, it is Bible opinions that separate them.

The drive-bys are perpetrated by the KJV-only group against the hand-clapping group.

The mutual edification group have an advantage, because when one speaker is taken out, someone steps up to replace him.

The supporters of one Christian camp have been throwing Malatov Cocktails into the building of the congregation that supports the other camp.

The congregation that was established solely in opposition to Rick Atchley rumbled with the church that thinks he might go to heaven even if they don’t think what he is doing is right.  The instrumental group was there to finish off the survivors from both gangs with their pegwinders and drumsticks.

Don’t try to sell a KJV Bible on certain corners or you might get a beat-down.

They have tattooed themselves according to Mac Lynn’s book, “The Churches of Christ in the United States.” Except for those who didn’t have a code.  They have made up their own and branded them on top of their old gang tatts.

The Two Songs and a Prayer Church of Christ has been growing but were upset that the Two Prayers and a Song Church of Christ started renting the building across the street.  All of the groups are anxiously awaiting the repercussions.  It will be ugly and probably bloody.

The Church of Christ (Non-literal reading of Genesis chapter 1) group and the Church of Christ (Recovery Support Groups) decided to team up so that they could hopefully convert or kill the Church of Christ (Literal Readers of Gen1/Death to Social Gospel Christians).  Well…also neither group could afford rent on its own.

The Grace Church of Christ stayed out of the mess as long as they could but finally decided to jump in, literally.  It was a rumble on 8 Mile.  They figured the merciful thing to do was use guns and finish the others off instead of just cutting them with razor blades and causing a slow death.

How sad!  When will the madness end?!  Who will take them the Gospel again?

Day 2 Report–Tulsa ISWW

Day 2 of being a preacher groupie was awesome.  I was able to swipe a cloth that Jeff Walling used to wipe his brow and it healed my headache.  I will cherish it always.  I was able to shake the hand of Rick Atchley (and it didn’t even burn).  I was within 10 feet of Patrick Mead and felt something like a shiver go up my leg.

Anyway, on to the report.  None of that is true but I did enjoy hearing each of those brothers speak and was blessed by it.

The day began with Rick Atchley (after getting lost.  I made an extra, unnecessary turn and we didn’t notice for awhile).  He spoke on the Identity of being an Ambassador.  Here are some short highlights

• Self-help is trying to fix what needs to be buried
• We need re-creation, not rennovation
• we are saved to be sent, not to sit
• Ambassador is a citizen of one country living in another as a resident alien (Tim! go find this sermon at RHchurch.org, it might be a good resource for your book)
• Ambassador is a representative of His/Her Ruler and People, who embodies the values of the home country 24/7.
• Ambassador is a messenger of the Ruler who has sent him/her.

Jeff Walling was next.  He spoke on LIFE–Living Intentionally for Eternity.  He shared some great thoughts on Luke 16, that unusual parable of the shrewd manager that almost seems to promote lying, cheating, and stealing.  Here was the summary:

• The Manager only had a little time
• The Manager only had a little stuff
• The Managaer, therefore, only had a little influence
• Spiritual Application:  Use the little time, stuff/money, influence we have for the cause of Christ daily.

Patrick Mead is terribly hilarious.  But he also has some great stories of what God is doing in Michigan.  The most amazing for me was the outreach to skaters, who contacted the church after one friend ODed.  They offered their church building for a memorial service.  Prayed with and supported the skaters.  Some gave their lives to Christ over time and travel the world as skateboarders but take the Gospel with them. For example, they travelled to Nepal, where missionaries are not welcome, but they had open, public discussions about the Gospel with Buddhists.  It all happened because some from the church sat and watched, occasionally talked to and took pictures of some pot-smoking young people and showed them love and acceptance. He spoke a lot about “Jesus and the Nobodies.”  Their church tries extra hard to reach the really different in our society.

Then Walling preached on Love being the basis of Evangelism.  It is so obvious yet so lacking.  Here are some short bits:

• Forget Evangelism until to you have love
• Evangelism is not a debate
• Instead of inviting a neighbor to church, do nice things for them for a period of time. Something loving.
• Love cannot keep silent. 
• Be brief.  Be personal.  Give all the Glory to God.
• Having a Christ-focus in your evangelism gets you to baptism much better than having a Baptism-focus gets you to Christ.
• Ask God, “Who do you want me to love today?”

The evening session was Joe Almanza, who is highly involved in prison ministry because he spent much time in prison.  His conversion story is a powerful example of God’s love, power, grace, etc.  He grew up in the Mexican Mafia.  Became a leader.  Lived the big life.  Got hooked on Heroin.  Was in and out of prison. Was shown love by some brethren and began changing his life.  Had an amazing encounter with a “taxi driver.”  And on and on.  I hope you can here the story someday. Order the CD if you want to be amazed and inspired.

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Blogger Buddy Report

Many of us gathered at CiCi’s pizza buffet for lunch.  I met some guys from TX I didn’t know and got to visit some with John, Trey, John Pease, Tucker and his family and friends, and many AIM missionaries.

I got lost again on the way to lunch.  Tulsa is a great place to be lost.  It is full of Church of Christ brethren and was full of water.

After the evening session I went out for pie with John and Maggie Dobbs.  No one else came so I didn’t have to share them.  They are a great couple and I really enjoyed being with them. Oh, and we all ended up eating a meal.  The pork chops were great.